


Wal-Mart

by rhiannonhero



Series: Orbiting [1]
Category: Smallville
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-02-05
Updated: 2011-02-05
Packaged: 2017-10-15 10:17:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/159822
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rhiannonhero/pseuds/rhiannonhero
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written April 2002.  Third in Orbiting Series.</p><p>Original Author's Notes:  This was the first fic written in my Oribiting Universe and my second fan fiction story ever. All the other stories spun out of this one, oddly enough.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Wal-Mart

Lex Luthor pulled up outside the Kent's farmhouse.  
It was Monday. He wasn't technically supposed to be there.

  The Kents had  
agreed that he and Clark could visit with each other on the weekend  
and on Wednesday evenings, if Clark didn't have too much homework.  
This was their way of trying to put the brakes on a love affair that  
had been careening terribly out of control. They knew there was no  
way to stop Clark from seeing Lex altogether and so, despite Jonathan's  
better judgement, they had come up with this arrangement.

Lex wasn't supposed to be here, but he had  
been restless and lonely and had lived through a dreadful phone  
call with his father. He decided that dropping in at the Kents to  
see if they would let him stay for dinner wasn't too much to expect  
from his boyfriend's family, was it?

As he extricated himself from his Porsche,  
Martha Kent came out onto the front porch with a watering can. She  
looked up in surprise at Lex walking towards the house.

"Lex! What brings you out here on a  
Monday?" she asked pleasantly, but Lex could make out the underlying  
caution.

"Bad day, Mrs, Kent. I had a very bad  
day and thought, if it wasn't too much trouble, that maybe I could  
have dinner over here tonight..." Lex trailed off watching  
her test each potted plant with her pinky finger to see if needed  
watered.

"Well, Lex, I'm not sure how Jonathan  
will feel about that...you just saw Clark yesterday, you know."  
Martha watered some marigolds in a large terra cotta pot. Lex pursed  
his lips a little and looked down at the ground.

Martha thought about what Lex had said, how  
he had admited a semblance of vulnerability and this, she realized,  
shouldn't go unrecognized. She looked up kindly and said, "I'm  
sorry you've had a bad day, hon. You are right to have come here.  
Yes, you can stay for dinner."

She walked over and threw her arm around  
Lex's neck. Lex froze and then patted her back uncomfortably. She  
pulled back smiling, "However, you are awfully early, it is  
only 4 o'clock."

Lex looked at his watch, gritted his teeth  
a little. "Oh."

"Clark is finishing up his chores and  
then I was going to send him into town to the Wal-Mart to run some  
errands." Martha continued.

"Lex!" Clark's voice shouted and  
there was no disguising the joy behind it. He was jogging carefully  
across the yard, the characteristic smile spread across his face.  
Martha watched him fight the urge to go into super-speed in his  
eagerness to reach Lex. She shook her head at herself. Seeing her  
son so happy...she just wished she could more easily trust the person  
that Clark had invested all that happiness in.

Lex turned at his lover's voice, "Clark!"  
he responded eagerly. Martha noted the way Lex's voice changed when  
he uttered her son's name. It deepened, softened and seemed to vibrate  
with true tenderness.

Clark halted in front of Lex and looked over  
at his mother briefly before following through with his impulse  
to embrace his boyfriend. "What are you doing here? It's Monday!"  
Clark asked. Lex watched as Clark ran his eyes up and down Lex's  
body obviously checking for signs of injury or illness.

"I'm fine, Clark." Lex chuckled,  
"I know it is Monday, I just had a bad day. That's all. Had  
a rough call with my father." Lex shrugged, crossing his arms  
across his chest embarrassed at his admission of the problem being  
his father in front of Martha.

"Ah, Lex, I'm sorry," Clark wrapped  
his arms around him again, "He is such a jerk to you sometimes...all  
the time. I'm glad you came here." Clark was really glad to  
see him and despite the potential problem with his Dad, he was thrilled.  
He knew that Lex coming here when he was having a bad day was the  
same thing as Lex admitting that he needed Clark. Maybe even that  
he loved Clark, something Lex hadn't said yet. Not only that, but  
it was really a better alternative to Lex's usual method of dealing  
with bad days, excessive drinking of expensive Scotch.

"Clark, I told Lex he could stay for  
dinner...but you still have to go to Wal-Mart for me. Lex can either  
go to Wal-Mart with you or he can come back closer to dinner time."  
Martha interupted hoping that Clark would release Lex from the bear  
hug he had him in before Jonathan came around from the barn.

Clark did release Lex. "Okay, Mom."  
His eyes were shining, " Um, Lex, you wanna go to Wal-Mart?"  


Lex shrugged and nodded, "Sure. I've  
never been to Wal-Mart. Sounds interesting."

Clark laughed, "You've _never_  
been to _Wal-Mart_?"

Lex didn't seem to understand why Clark was  
so surprised, "No, I have never been to Wal-Mart. Why is that  
funny?"

Clark looked at his mom in amazement, "Mom,  
did you just hear that? Lex has never been to Wal-Mart!"

Martha smiled at her son, nodded her head  
and responded, "I'm sure there are a lot of things Lex has  
never done."

Clark guffawed, "I doubt that. He's  
pretty much done it all." And then he blushed because he realized  
just how suggestive his voice had sounded.

Martha looked uncomfortable momentarily before  
Lex cut in, "Actually, Clark, there are a lot of things I've  
never done that you can introduce me to. Like Wal-Mart or like feeding  
cows...I've never done that...sounds like it could be fun."  


Clark shook his head, "Feeding the cows  
is _not_ fun, but you can help sometime."

"I'd rather he didn't," Jonathan's  
voice came clearly from behind them. Martha blushed at her husband's  
rudeness. "I think Lex has had enough to do with Kent cows..."  


Lex bowed his head briefly before saying,  
"Mr. Kent, I've told you before that I have no idea how those  
chemicals were dumped on your property...I don't know how I can  
do more to try to make it right."

"It can't be made right, Lex. And you  
are never helping to feed our cows." Jonathan pushed past them  
into the house.

  
Clark frowned furiously and started after his father. Martha stopped  
him by placing her hand on his chest, "Stop, Clark. Go to Wal-Mart.  
Have fun showing it to Lex. I'll handle your father and he'll be  
civil to Lex over dinner. Okay?"

Clark frowned responding, "Okay, but  
he'd better be nice."

  
"It's okay, Clark. Let's go to Wal-Mart." Lex interjected.

Clark, still looking after his father unhappily,  
reached his hand toward his mom who handed him the keys to the truck,  
a credit card and a two page grocery list. "I know I don't  
have to say this. But Clark, make sure Lex doesn't pay." She  
whispered to him as she gave him a hug.

  
Clark pulled out her arms and turned toward the Kent family truck.

  
"We're going in the truck?" Lex asked.

"Um, yeah, how the heck do you think  
we'd fit two weeks worth of groceries and household supplies in  
your Porsche?" Clark's frown broke and he grinned at Lex, shaking  
his head like the older man was crazy.

Lex sat on the passenger side of the truck  
breathing in the sweaty scent steaming up from the hot seats. He'd  
never been in an old truck like this. He wasn't about to say that  
to Clark, afraid that it would sound insulting. But he was really  
intrigued by the sensory experience. The rough shocks, the smell  
of the seats, the dirt and dried mud on the floor.

Clark turned to him, "Fasten your seat  
belt, Lex."

"Okay," Lex obediently strapped  
himself in, he knew better than to argue with Clark about vehicular  
safety.

"So tell me about what happened with  
your Dad," Clark asked gently as he maneuvered the truck out  
onto the road.

"Don't really want to go into the details."  
Lex murmured.

"Okay, well, what _do_ you want  
to talk about?"

Lex sighed, reached over and put his hand on Clark's thigh, "I  
don't want to talk at all. I want to sit here in silence with you.  
I want to look out the window and think about this magical place  
we're going called Wal-Mart."

Clark grinned over at Lex, "Okay...but  
don't get too excited. It isn't Disneyland or anything."

"Now, Disneyland I've been to."  
Lex replied earnestly.

  
Clark cracked up, "I haven't."

  
Lex smiled, "I'll take you sometime. It's pretty fun."

"Tell me about Disneyland." Clark  
loved to hear Lex's purring voice.

  
"Nah. Later. Let's just enjoy the ride."

Clark nodded, taking one hand off the steering  
wheel long enough to caress Lex's hand still on his thigh, "Okay."

Lex disengaged his hand from Clark's leg  
as they pulled into the Wal-Mart parking lot.

  
"Wow, there are a lot of cars here."

  
"Yeah, Lex, the Wal-Mart is always busy. _Everyone_ goes  
to Wal-Mart, that's why I was surprised you've never been. But I  
guess since you have eveything _delivered_ to you..."  
Clark tenderly teased.

Lex was unfastening his seatbelt and watching  
the people walk out of the Wal-Mart. "Why is everyone so fat?"  
he asked earnestly.

  
Clark looked at him in bewilderment, "How should I know why  
they are fat? I don't go home with them and monitor their diets."  


Clark was thoughtful for a moment as they  
approached the store, "But...and I've never even told my mom  
this, but sometimes when I'm shopping, I will look at what people  
have in their carts and if they are fat, I make sure I don't buy  
what they have."

  
Lex looked at him in amusement, "Really?"

"Yeah. We'll test it out today...just  
to show you. I mean it isn't fail safe or anything, but we'll see  
how it works out today."

Lex nodded looking rather intrigued, "Okay,  
cool."

As they entered the store Clark moved ahead  
of Lex to pick out a shopping cart. Clark checked a few carts to  
make sure that he had one that rolled smoothly. He didn't want Lex's  
first Wal-Mart experience to be effected by a cart that pulled one  
way or the other or that rattled. When he had chosen one he turned  
to find that Lex was lingering over by the little toy dispensers  
at the entrance of the store. Clark rolled the cart over to him.

  
"So you put in a quarter and this machine will spit out a random  
toy, right?" Lex looked at the dispenser carefully.

Clark nodded, "Yeah...but it's all junk."  


Lex pointed at a plastic ring that had Darth  
Vadar head molded in plastic as it's center, "That's pretty  
cool, huh?"

  
Clark chuckled, "Lex, it's all junk."

  
"Do you have a quarter, Clark? I'll pay you back."

"Lex, it's a waste because you never  
get the toy you want and it's just a bunch of junk."

  
Lex looked up into Clark's eyes, "Do you have a quarter, Clark?"  
he whispered again.

Clark looked into his eyes and started searching  
his pockets, "Umm, I've got two, here." He handed them  
over to Lex.

Lex smiled, "Thanks. Okay, so I stick  
the quarter in this slot, right?" Lex put the quarter in the  
slot and twisted the handle.

"Now you lift that little door and the  
toy is in there."

Lex's hand paused at the door, "You  
think I got the cool Darth Vadar ring?"

Clark shook his head, "I doubt it Lex,  
I never ever got what I wanted."

Lex opened the door. The plastic bubble contained  
two temporary tattoos one of a snake and one of a bird.

Clark said, "Those are pretty cool."

  
Lex was frowning, "What do you do with these?"

"They are temporary tatoos, you put  
them on with water and then they wash off later."

  
"Oh, I saw some of these in college but they were really big  
and elaborate and you had to pay to have them put on." Lex  
leaned over and whispered, "Will you put these on me next Friday  
night?"

Clark nodded, "Yeah, in some very naughty  
places," he whispered back.

  
Lex smiled smugly. "Okay, I've got one more quarter."  
He slid it into the slot and twisted the handle.

This time the plastic bubble contained a  
plastic bracelet that had a rosebud in the center of it. Lex tried  
to put it on his wrist but it was too small. "I really wanted  
that damn Darth Vadar ring." He muttered.

"C'mon, Lex. I've got a lot of stuff  
to get."

Lex took a long look at the Darth Vadar ring  
and followed Clark into the store.

 _"I'm all out of love  
I'm so lost without you  
It can't be too late  
To say that I was so wrong!"*_

The song played over the Wal-Mart sound system  
and Lex Luthor sang the chorus lightly under his breath as he trailed  
along beside the shopping cart. "God, how do I even know the  
words?" he muttered, watching Clark place toilet paper on the  
rack under the shopping cart.

"The mass music sinks into the subconscious  
via commercials and various hypnotic sound systems like the one  
here." Clark replied.

  
Lex looked at him, "Sounds like you've given that some thought."

  
"Yeah, every trip to the Wal-Mart reminds me how much the popular  
culture has sunk into me. I mean, I never make it out of here without  
some terrible pop song stuck in my head. Last time it was "Time  
In A Bottle" by whoever sang that." Clark looked at his  
list. "Shampoo." He stated and guided them over several  
aisles.

Lex noticed that they were walking right  
past the condoms. He stopped and studied them briefly. "Should  
I get some of these?" he asked.

Clark, looking at the shampoos, trying to  
find one on sale, blushed violently when he saw Lex examining the  
condoms.

  
Lex held up a package, "Ribbed for extra pleasure." He  
smirked.

  
"Lex! Put those back!" Clark hissed, looking around to  
see if anyone was around.

Lex put the condoms down. "I was just  
fucking with you, Clark."

"Yeah, well, if you do that again, you  
 _won't_ be fucking with me, if you know what I mean."  
Clark whispered, beet red and turning redder.

Lex chuckling followed Clark over to the  
shampoos and watched as Clark finally settled on a brand that was  
buy one get two free. Lex had never realized before this shopping  
expedition just how frugal the Kents had to be. Clark pointed at  
another brand and said, "This is the brand I like best. It  
smells good. See?" Pulling one off the shelf, taking the lid  
off and putting it under Lex's nose.

  
"Yeah, it does smell good. You must've been using this last  
month." Lex replied.

  
Clark nodded as he replaced the bottle, "Yeah, it was on sale  
last month."

Clark turned back to his shopping list, "Okay,  
now it is time for the groceries which are on the other side of  
the store."

  
"This is one huge ass store." Lex looked around wonderingly.  
"It's got everything. Hardware, dishes, clothes, groceries,  
toys..."

  
"Yeah."

"Do you buy your clothes here?"  
Lex asked as they passed the clothing section.

  
Clark blushed a little, "Um, yeah sometimes. If they are on  
sale." He bit his lower lip in embarrassment. "When I  
went through my last growth spurt I almost put my parents in bankruptcy  
over my clothes. They had to buy new stuff for me about once a month  
for a year. It was tough."

  
"Why are you embarrassed?" Lex asked gently.

"Because, I know you buy really nice  
stuff. I know this stuff is really cheap. I don't know...I mean  
I guess I shouldn't be. My parents do the best they can."

"Clark, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to  
embarrass you."

"I know, let's just get over to the  
food, okay?"

Lex trailed behind him for a moment to let  
Clark regain his composure. He really hadn't intended to embarrass  
the kid. He wondered if it was bad that he had become so relaxed  
with Clark that he didn't really consider the implications of things  
before he asked questions.

Clark looked behind him, "Come on, Lex,  
keep up."

As they walked toward the bustling grocery  
section of the Wal-Mart they began to attract attention. Lex distinctly  
heard one woman gasp to her husband, "Is that _Lex_ _Luthor_  
here in _Wal-Mart_?" He ignored them and followed Clark  
to the frozen foods section.

Clark once again scanned the aisle for sales  
trying to match his mom's shopping list with the best buys.

  
"Clark, darling!" A voice cooed. Clark looked up to see  
Marcela Woods, his 6th grade math teacher and her daughter,  
LouEllen, returned from college.

"Hi, Mrs. Woods." Clark smiled politely.

"How is your mother, dear?" Mrs.  
Woods drawled.

"She's fine." Mrs. Woods looked  
pointedly at Lex, "Um, Mrs. Woods, this is my friend Lex Luthor.  
Lex, this is my 6th grade teacher Mrs. Woods."

Clark looked at Lex and saw that the public mask had dropped over  
his features. "Mrs. Woods, it is delightful to make your acquaintance."  


  
Mrs. Woods pulled LouEllen to her side, "This is my daughter,  
LouEllen, Mr. Luthor. She's just returned from Metropolis U for  
the summer break. She will be in the Smallville area all summer  
long." LouEllen was blushing terribly and seemed humiliated  
that her mother was rather obviously trying to attract Lex's attention  
to her daughter.

  
Lex shook LouEllen's hand and commented, "I'm sure that you  
will enjoy your break." LouEllen mumbled something incoherent  
in response.

  
Clark's mouth was twitching as he found himself remembering the  
activities he and Lex had engaged in just the day before...activities  
that would make Lex a very poor match for LouEllen Woods despite  
his mega-bucks.

Clark rapidly wrapped up the conversation  
by telling them that he and Lex were in a hurry to finish up this  
errand for Martha. Mrs. Woods walked away looking over her shoulder  
at Lex. Clark's super-hearing picked up her whispering, "Very  
good, darling, I think you made an impression."

Clark barely stifled a giggle when he looked  
to see Lex paying more attention to the package of fish sticks Clark  
had added to the cart than he had paid to LouEllen or her mother.

Clark pulled a few things out of another  
freezer, rushed down the remaining aisles and checked the list one  
last time. "Okay, that's it, Lex. Let's go." Clark started  
pushing the cart toward the check out. Lex followed him hands in  
pockets.

As they stood in line Lex ran his eyes over  
the headlines of The Globe, The Enquirer and the other tabloids.  
"Oh, look, Clark. I'm on the cover of this one." Lex murmured  
indicating The Globe. "Lex Luthor Devising Means to Clone Self."  
He read aloud, "Hmm. That's a good idea." He smirked.  


Clark was busy with the girl checking out  
his groceries. "Hey Melissa, did you do okay on that geometry  
test you were worried about?" Lex listened absently to their  
chatter as she bagged the groceries and Clark paid. Lex noticed  
that Clark slightly cringed when the total was announced but pulled  
out the credit card and paid anyway. Melissa had noticed Lex but  
was trying to act cool about his presence.

When it was all wrapped up, Lex pulled out  
his own wallet and found his smallest bill. A $50. "Can I get  
this in quarters?" Lex asked. Melissa nodded, "Let me  
call my manager."

While they waited, Clark smirked at Lex in  
silence. Finally a manager arrived with $50 in quarters in a bag  
for Lex. "Thank you, ah, Mr. Guthrie" Lex smiled looking  
at the manager's nametag. "Oh, and I'll need another bag too,  
please."

"Paper or Plastic?" Melissa asked.

"Plastic please" Lex replied.

Clark wheeled the cart full of bagged groceries  
behind Lex as he walked purposely to the exit of the store. He approached  
the toy dispenser and proceeded to put one quarter after another  
into the machine until the elusive Darth Vadar ring finally popped  
out. Clark looked in wonder as Lex smiled almost gleefully. "Look,  
I got it!"

Clark chuckled, "Yeah, `cause you put  
like $20 worth of quarters in the thing!"

Lex sat at the Kent kitchen table with his  
bag of cheap toys fondling his Darth Vadar ring.

"Well, what did you think of Wal-Mart,  
Lex?" Martha asked as Clark came into the kitchen freshly showered  
and clean.

Lex looked up at her with a rare open smile,  
"I loved it Mrs. Kent. It was really fun."

Clark and his mom exchanged glances and Clark  
leaned over and gently kissed Lex's scalp.

**Author's Note:**

> It's hard to believe in a way that this was basically the beginning of the 100+ stories I've written now. Thank goodness my writing has improved from this, though. :)
> 
> Coding issues are due to importing from rhiannonhero.net. Archiving as is for now.


End file.
